LJ Hooker Property Specialists has established their new flagship location in North East Adelaide, under the direction of principal Michael Fenn, merging the Greenwith and Mawson Lakes locations into a new “superstore”.
Mr Fenn said his goal in creating a centralised location was to develop an environment where customers, clients and staff felt at home.
“The environment was probably the last piece of the puzzle to give clients a nice place to visit,” Mr Fenn said.
“Just as importantly, it will also provide our staff with a first-class working environment, where they’re proud to come to work.
“The new superstore offers a contemporary work environment with flexible breakout spaces and refresh areas, allowing the staff to thrive in a space that nurtures them to be the best they can be.”
Mr Fenn has seen his business grow to more than 40 staff members during his 15 years as principal and he has acquired a number of agencies including Greenwith, Golden Grove, Mawson Lakes, Modbury, Gawler and Barossa.
The new superstore will bring together the Greenwith and Mawson Lakes sites while Gawler and Barossa will continue to operate standalone.
The new office will also be significantly larger and allow Mr Fenn to expand his reach.
“For us, the new office will have more space internally and that will mean we have room for more staff and they can work in different areas and we can expand the team,” he said.
The office has been extensively refitted with large signage added that makes it a very prominent part of North East Adelaide and will help to build the LJ Hooker Property Specialists brand in the area.
“To move into a key position in North East Adelaide and to have an office of this calibre can only encourage growth,” he said.
“It’s a newer, better experience when clients come through, and it’s a central hub to the North East, it’s literally smack bang right in the middle.”
Bringing the offices together would also help to more effectively manage the day-to-day operations of the business as well and bring key people back together, Mr Fenn said.
“When we went to three offices we probably underestimated just how much time it would take to manage three locations,” he said.
“So it made sense to bring it all back under one roof.”
“The efficiencies around that and cultural engagement make a lot of sense and will encourage growth.”
Mr Fenn started his career in real estate more than 21 years ago after initially working overseas as a chef, before pursuing a career as a sales agent.
A big part of his success has come from his ability to bring in good people and also surround himself with other successful real estate professionals and business leaders.
“I’ve always surrounded myself with people who were bigger than us and watched what they were doing,” he said.
“From that, it made sense to focus on things on more of a macro level.”
Mr Fenn said he has always put a large emphasis on building a strong culture across the offices.
A key focus on hiring and working with great staff has been a major reason Mr Fenn has been able to expand so rapidly.
“We’ve got amazing people, we’ve got a lot of longevity in our staff,” he said.
“My longest serving staff member has been with me for 15 years and started with me on day one.
“And over 15 years, we’ve had a lot of staff who have hung around so we do have an amazing culture.”
